Disco 2 Likely alternator life?

Hi,

I was wondering if there is a rough estimate of alternator life? I know this is not going to be exact and there are many factors which can reduce is life, but I was wondering what sort of consensus there is. I have a few long journeys coming up where recovery would be awkward!

In my last car, not a Land Rover, the alternator lasted just over 300k miles, My 2004 TD5 Auto has done 145k miles. I don't want to replace it if they go on forever, but I don't want to be stranded either.

Just wondering if anyone has an opinion.

Thanks.

In my opinion... There's more than one item fitted to a disco 2 that if it fails will leave the vehicle stranded.
In other words get on with your life, wait until the alternator fails then repair or replace it.

If its of any help I had one (original) go at about 90k and the replacement went within 2 years and 5k. I got it replaced for free by the indie garage. Next one lasted till I sold the car.

Many thanks. Looks like their life is pretty random. The replacement I put on for the 300k mile one lasted 2 miles!

Cheers.

PopPops said:

Hi,

I was wondering if there is a rough estimate of alternator life? I know this is not going to be exact and there are many factors which can reduce is life, but I was wondering what sort of consensus there is. I have a few long journeys coming up where recovery would be awkward!

In my last car, not a Land Rover, the alternator lasted just over 300k miles, My 2004 TD5 Auto has done 145k miles. I don't want to replace it if they go on forever, but I don't want to be stranded either.

Just wondering if anyone has an opinion.

Thanks.

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Hiya Mate!
you off to France or somewhere?
We are, in two days time. (Recovery for us will be handled by ADAC, but they are not taking on any new clients ourtside of Germany anymore, sadly else I'd have given you the details.)
So just hope you do manage to get some sort of recovery organised wherever you are going.
My alterrnator is on 164k at the mo. Seems OK. And we travel with two cool boxes so it earns its living.

Stanleysteamer said:

Hiya Mate!
you off to France or somewhere?
We are, in two days time. (Recovery for us will be handled by ADAC, but they are not taking on any new clients ourtside of Germany anymore, sadly else I'd have given you the details.)
So just hope you do manage to get some sort of recovery organised wherever you are going.
My alterrnator is on 164k at the mo. Seems OK. And we travel with two cool boxes so it earns its living.

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Good to hear from you!

We are not off yet (having to wait on issues with my late father's house), but I'm trying to plan for the trip down, about 5 hours, as we will be more on our own this time than others. The alternator seems OK, just trying to cover all bases! I do have breakdown cover of sorts, but it's only for recovery to a location fairly close to the breakdown. I'll argue with myself for a while and maybe remove it and at least change the brushes.

I'm jealous you are off soon. Maybe we'll be able to get away by August.

Thanks and enjoy your trip!

PP.

PopPops said:

Good to hear from you!

We are not off yet (having to wait on issues with my late father's house), but I'm trying to plan for the trip down, about 5 hours, as we will be more on our own this time than others. The alternator seems OK, just trying to cover all bases! I do have breakdown cover of sorts, but it's only for recovery to a location fairly close to the breakdown. I'll argue with myself for a while and maybe remove it and at least change the brushes.

I'm jealous you are off soon. Maybe we'll be able to get away by August.

Thanks and enjoy your trip!

PP.

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Nice to hear from you too! For once I am not jealous of others but they are jealous of me! Something new!
I have to confess to being a bit of a "it ain't bust, don't fix it" kinda guy, but i do always carry a spare serpentine belt, as well as liquids just in case. But you could carry hoses, bits of wire, the list is endless.
Only time I broke down, in a LR,I was still able to drive the car, it was the diesel return hose, or one of the tiny ones that link the injectors together on the 300tdi. So we drove off the Mway and eventually found a Norauto, which you probably know as it is like Halfords, bought some tube for about 3€ and fixed it in no time.
TD5 one christmas I managed to lose both nuts holding the wastegate on and as all shops were shut couldn't get two 10mm nuts. Infuriating, so just had to put up with it going into limp mode every now and then! Until I got some nuts. so I tend to carry those as spares too.
Getting the alternator off is a bit of a pig. Wouldn't you prefer to just buy spare brushes and a diode pack? Or even a refurbished alternator and carry it around? Makes me think you must have had a problem with one in the past! I can count the number of breakdowns I've had on the fingers of one hand in 48 years of driving, and it was never the same thing twice.
Crankshaft pulley wheel, Mk 1 Cortina,
Timing belt, 1600 Mk 3 Cortina
Dynamo brush came loose, Mini 850
Ran out of fuel due to faulty gauge, BMW 2.8
and what I mentioned above, that's it!
Ok, one hand and one finger.
Only two of those happened any distance from home, and in those cases I was able to drive home. Never needed recovery. So hopefully you'll be as lucky as me!
All the best for August!

Stanleysteamer said:

I have to confess to being a bit of a "it ain't bust, don't fix it" kinda guy...

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Yes, me too, which is why I'm so unsure about this one!

Stanleysteamer said:

Getting the alternator off is a bit of a pig. Wouldn't you prefer to just buy spare brushes and a diode pack? Or even a refurbished alternator and carry it around? Makes me think you must have had a problem with one in the past!

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Yes, I did think of carrying an alternator, but the idea of a refurbished one I like.

Historically, I've found dynamos and alternators unreliable (well, 300k miles on the last car is probably very good!) having had them fail on every car over the last 45 years except this one, but I've only owned it 18 months / 10k miles. I do have spare brushes, the only items that "wear" (well, bearings maybe) which I carry around.

Thanks for your ideas, I have a bit of time to agonise further! Plenty of other jobs (as always) to do on it before the trip!

Cheers.

Mine failed a few months ago, the vacuum pump had leaked oil into it.

Too many fail points to just keep brushes and the like, so either get a whole spare or just leave it and it might never fail.

MJI said:

Mine failed a few months ago, the vacuum pump had leaked oil into it.

Too many fail points to just keep brushes and the like, so either get a whole spare or just leave it and it might never fail.

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Many thanks. I guessed there probably wouldn't be a simple yes/no answer to this!

In the interim you could at least ensure that no oil can get to it from the vacuum pump!

Stanleysteamer said:

In the interim you could at least ensure that no oil can get to it from the vacuum pump!

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The vacuum pump is bolted to the alternator.

its the wearing of the alternator bearings that allows oil to leak through to the alt from the vac pump

MJI said:

The vacuum pump is bolted to the alternator.

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Ahhhh! Is that how it happens? "Ministry of Cr@p Design" again. Have never had to take mine off, knew there was something bolted to it that had to come off, never twigged that the thing bolted to it was the cause of the problem. Amazing how oil fu cks up the elctrics so often on TD5s cf injection loom.
Mad.

jamesmartin said:

its the wearing of the alternator bearings that allows oil to leak through to the alt from the vac pump

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Explains everything! I'm sure the OP will read this with interest!

Or have a Discovery 1 200tdi and remove the fuel cut off solenoid and never worry about the lack of 12 volt power,
You have to stall it to stop but as long as fuel is in the tank it will run,
Or you can fit a second alternator where the Aircon compressor goes

Stanleysteamer said:

Explains everything! I'm sure the OP will read this with interest!

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Yes, I have! Thanks to all.

Europa486 said:

Or you can fit a second alternator where the Aircon compressor goes

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I have heard of that one. Pity it's the aircon compressor and not the ACE pump, mine doesn't have ACE!

Stanleysteamer said:

Ahhhh! Is that how it happens? "Ministry of Cr@p Design" again. Have never had to take mine off, knew there was something bolted to it that had to come off, never twigged that the thing bolted to it was the cause of the problem. Amazing how oil fu cks up the elctrics so often on TD5s cf injection loom.
Mad.

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My last car had the vacuum pump bolted onto the end of the camshaft, no extra oil feeds. Wonder why Land Rover didn't do it that way, there is space and that would have solved the problem of that blanking plate leaking oil?

PopPops said:

My last car had the vacuum pump bolted onto the end of the camshaft, no extra oil feeds. Wonder why Land Rover didn't do it that way, there is space and that would have solved the problem of that blanking plate leaking oil?

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Too obvious to the fu cks who designed the car!